Touching Souls
by LazyFirefly
Summary: A girl who sees the future meets a girl who sees the past. As secrets are uncovered, new memories and connections are made. But can you truly escape the life you thought you left behind?
1. Preface

**{Preface}**

* * *

The sun was slowly setting, travelling through the beautifully coloured sky as the day came to an end. It wasn't long before the light would disappear completely and the night could begin. Next to the soft chirping of the birds and the rushing of the nearby water, it was peacefully quiet.

Bella exhaled into the cold air, small clouds leaving her mouth and drifting upwards. She had been sitting in the snow for a few minutes now, and she was trying not to let the low temperature bother her. Soon she adapted and she found herself wandering off.

This had been her favourite place to go to when she needed some time alone, away from everyone and everything. She had discovered it not long after their move a few years back, when she had been very overwhelmed and came upon this spot, just a few feet off the path. The memory of sitting here, against the tree, near the water, for the first time was strong and laced with a feeling of peace. Since that day, she had often found herself going back; sometimes with friends, but mostly alone. This place had a calming effect on her; it helped her to clear her mind. Whether she read a book or just let her thoughts run wild didn't matter.

Her dad hadn't been too happy about it when he found out where she disappeared to so often. Luckily Bella got some help from her friends to change his opinion on the matter.

This afternoon she had forgone her homework and had instead searched through her closet for some warm clothes. With the addition of a winter coat, a pair of hiking boots, a beanie and some knitted mittens, she was ready to go on her way.

Well, that is after making herself a thermos full of tea, of course.

A book clamped under her arm, Bella made her way through the snow and onto the path that started right next to her house.

Now that book lay forgotten on the ground. She had honestly tried to read for a while, but had given up when she caught herself staring at the same page for ten minutes without taking in a single word. Sometimes her mind was simply too busy for her to be able to focus. Instead she watched her surroundings before closing her eyes and breathing in the sharp cold air.

It had already been a few hours since she had left the house, but she didn't feel like leaving just yet. In a while she would go back home to take a warm shower and listen to her dad giving a speech on the dangers of hypothermia. For now she simply sat back and enjoyed the calm. Here, in the middle of nowhere, she did not have to worry about what tomorrow would bring.

~()~

Snow slowly fell from the sky as Alice ran through the forest. It had been a while since she had last been alone and she was planning to take full advantage of this rare opportunity. Usually Edward or Jasper would join her on a run, but today she had felt like being on her own for a while. Privacy and 'me-time' were rare phenomena in a family of vampires with enhanced senses. She had grabbed the chance to sneak off when the others had been occupied. While she cared for all of them, some weird part of her had not wanted to try and explain why she was leaving on her own.

She had seen that no one would follow her.

Her mind slowly cleared of all her busy thoughts, the wonderfully fresh smells in the air helping her to focus and put all her energy into her movements. Even though she was not the fastest in the family, she could achieve quite the speed if she wanted to. With a grin she remembered when she had beaten Emmett in a race last year. Her big brother had, of course, claimed that she must have cheated, but his wink had shown her that even he did not believe that.

Her family was, quite literally, all she had and she loved them with her entire heart.

As Alice neared a stream of water, she slowed down until she came to a stop. Closing her eyes, she took in the sounds that surrounded her; birds screeching, flying high up into the sky, leaves rustling with the cold breeze. A herd of moose was grazing several miles away, but she had no need to feed and moved on.

It was a few seconds later that she happened upon a new sound. The familiar beating made her frown, a deep breath in confirming her suspicion. However, when she scanned through the near future nothing came up. She very briefly contemplated on what to do, but before long her curiosity got the best of her. Slowly she set off into the direction of the heartbeat that had caught her attention.

The closer she got, the more pronounced the sound got and she moved into the shadows to stay hidden. Finally she was close enough to see who had caught her attention and she inhaled sharply. A few feet away, across the water stream, a girl was seated in the snow. Her back leant against a tree and her eyes were closed, but Alice knew she was not asleep.

The girl seemed to be about as tall as Alice herself, and she guessed the girl was about the same physical age too. There was something about her that made Alice want to get to know her, to come closer.

The girl did not move at all when Alice slowly sat down in the snow. Instead of paying attention to the wetness of the snow that was seeping into her clothes, she glanced over at the beautiful girl across the water before closing her eyes once more.

Together they sat in undisturbed peace.

* * *

 _"Life is like a waterfall - it is constantly moving and there is always an uneven flow to it."_

* * *

 **A/N: Hey! Please leave me a review, they make me very happy.**

 **\- Laura**


	2. Eyes are Windows

**{Eyes Are Windows}**

* * *

Bella leaned against the wall, looking down at her dad who sat at the kitchen table. She was up much earlier than usual for a free Saturday, and he was looking at her with badly concealed surprise. Things soon became clear as she explained what her plans for the day were.

"I'll probably be gone until tonight," Bella said after a moment of thinking.

Her dad chuckled. "That's alright, just message me when you're on your way back home. I'm going out with Billy later, but I think I'll be back by the time you return. Have fun with Angela!"

"Thanks," Bella smiled.

"Oh," he said. "And if you need some money for clothes, let me know."

She nodded at the sweet gesture, although they both knew she would probably not buy much today. Shopping was not really her thing, and she still had enough sweaters and pairs of jeans in her closet to get her through the winter. With a quick goodbye she left the kitchen and went upstairs to her room. Picking up her phone from where it was charging, she sent a quick text.

Just about half an hour ago, she had been rudely woken up by her ringtone. A bit unusual, as it was weekend and she liked to sleep in when the chance presented itself, something which her friends definitely knew. It ended up being Angela, who, with quite a bit of bribing (involving chocolate cake) had managed to convince her to go on an impromptu shopping trip to Anchorage.

She would have to get her rest another time.

A new message came in: Angela would be picking her up within a few minutes. Bella dug into her closet to find her purse, only to find the damned thing hidden under a pile of clothes. With a bit of effort she managed to get it out and leave behind a somewhat neat shelf. Well, she could fix that later. She grabbed her phone and wallet too and one last check later she was ready to go downstairs. In the hallway, she slipped into her sneakers and winter coat, zipping it up all the way to protect herself from the cold. Out of her pockets she pulled a pair of gloves, which she put on as well. She contemplated on taking a scarf and a beanie with her, but decided it would be unnecessary since they would be walking around in the stores most of the time anyway.

Bella unlocked the front door and stepped outside, taking a deep breath of the freezing cold air. Just as she climbed off the porch, a familiar blue car drove into the street. Bella quickly walked over to the end of their driveway and waited for Angela to come to a stop. When she did, Bella climbed into the passenger's seat and slammed the door shut, thankful for the warmth inside the car.

"Morning," Angela said.

"Good morning to you too," Bella answered. She reached for the seatbelt, fastening it before turning around to face her friend. When she noticed the exhausted expression she frowned. "What's wrong? You don't look good."

Angela groaned. "I know, I look like shit. I got into another fight with my parents yesterday, they just can't seem to agree with me on a single thing."

"I'm sorry," Bella said apologetically. "I hope the shopping will cheer you up a bit."

"Probably," Angela smiled, starting the car and backing out of the driveway. "I really need to get a new jacket today, this one has several holes in it now thanks to Mike being a genius. Is there anything you want to buy?"

Bella waved goodbye to her father, who stood in front of the kitchen window. "I don't know. I think I'll have to see what is around. Now tell me, what exactly happened yesterday?"

The drive to Anchorage was filled with talking and singing, ensuring Bella was well awake once they entered the city and found their way to the city centre.

"So," Bella said after they had arrived at the parking lot. "Where are we going first?"

"Let's get some coffee first," Angela started. "And then we should just walk down the street and see what we like. Oh, and I'd like to check out this new independent boutique that opened like a week ago. Aunt Karen told me about it and it sounds awesome."

Bella's brain very much perked up at the mentioning of coffee, and she was quick to agree to Angela's plan. Together they made their way over to a small café not too far away. Fifteen minutes later they had consumed their daily dose of caffeine and they were ready to start shopping.

Bella smiled as Angela grabbed her gloved hand and pulled her along into the very first store they came across. It was almost endearing to see how happy her friend would get when surrounded by clothes. Where she herself soon felt overwhelmed by all the options and the disorganised displays, Angela only saw possibilities.

However, Angela's enthusiasm was extremely contagious and Bella found herself browsing through the racks. It was quite busy in the store, but she was trying not to pay too much attention to everyone else.

"Bella!"

Bella turned around to see her friend holding up a long navy-blue dress.

"This would look really good on you," Angela gushed. "You always look amazing in blue, you should try it on!"

Bella raised her brows. "What on earth should I wear this to? I never wear dresses."

"Well, you could come to the Valentine's dance next month…" Angela trailed off, blinking innocently.

"Ange," Bella groaned. "No."

"Alright, alright," Angela said, holding her free hand up in surrender. "But could you at least try it on? Just for me?"

Not much later, the two girls left the store to step back onto the street. Angela was wearing a massive grin, where Bella was holding a shopping bag with her newly purchased dress. Still in a daze, she tried to figure out how exactly Angela had managed to convince her to not only put it on, but to buy it as well.

Her friend sure was persuasive.

After browsing through a few more stores, they were ready to get lunch. They did not have to look long before they found a cute little restaurant where they ordered food and rested their feet for a while. When they were finished Bella was quick to pay the bill, ignoring Angela's sharp glare.

"You drove us here," was the only explanation she gave.

"Let's go to the new boutique," Angela said happily as they stepped out of the restaurant, her annoyance towards Bella already forgotten.

"Sure," Bella shrugged.

A look at the google maps showed them the way and within a few minutes of walking they found it hidden away in a less busy street.

"Ooh, that does look really cute," Angela smiled, peering into the shop window.

"Let's go inside," Bella suggested, looking up at the sky and noticing the dark clouds. It seemed like it would be snowing again soon.

Angela stepped through the door, Bella following close behind. The little bell on the doorpost tinkled as they walked in, alerting the seemingly empty shop to their arrival. The space was not very big, but the white walls helped to open up the room, which was strategically filled with different clothing items.

Within seconds Angela had wandered off further into the store and instead of following her, Bella turned to walk into the other direction. She soon found a rack full of cozy-looking sweaters and immediately began to browse, taking off her gloves to feel the fabric.

There was nothing better than a fluffy sweater.

A white jumper caught her attention, but after a look at the label and those of the other sweaters she hung the item back with a shrug. Moving on, Bella continued her journey through the store. But as she stepped around a tall drawer, she abruptly bumped into a wall (was that a person?) and fell to the ground.

"I'm so sorry!" a lovely voice said, panicked.

Bella looked up and spotted the person (not a wall!) she had, quite literally, walked into.

"I did not see you!" the girl rambled on, her eyes wide. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bump into you, you surprised me! Are you alright?"

Bella realised she was still staring and shook herself out of it. "Yes, I'm fine. I'm sorry, too. I should've looked where I was walking."

Before she could react, the girl grabbed her hand and pulled her back up. Now that they were standing Bella noticed they were about the same height.

"No, it's my fault," the girl said, looking her over. "I'm Alice, by the way."

Bella clenched her fists before looking the girl in the eye. "I'm Bella."

Alice gasped and neither of the two moved for a moment, frozen to their spots. The air was charged, a weird buzzing feeling taking over. The strange occurrence passed as suddenly as it had come when Bella awkwardly cleared her throat and spoke up.

"Anyway," she chuckled nervously, averting her eyes. "Thanks for helping me up."

Alice shook her head as if to get rid of her thoughts. "Of course, it's no problem! Could you find what you were looking for?"

"Could I find what?" Bella asked, confused.

"Clothes, silly," Alice smiled endearingly before explaining, "I work here."

"Oh," Bella blushed, feeling quite stupid when she spotted the logo on Alice's shirt. "You sell nice clothes, I just didn't find anything that was for me. Or it wasn't my size, you know. But I'm sure my friend found something."

"Not the right size? Are you sure?" Alice asked, seemingly confused.

Bella nodded. "It happens."

"Strange," Alice mumbled under her breath.

Thrown off by Alice's reaction, Bella went to ask a question when her attention was pulled to her friend, who came walking their way.

"Bella!" Angela called. "I forgot my purse at the-" She stopped talking and took in the two girls. "Am I interrupting something?"

Blushing, Bella took a step back, creating some space before shaking her head. "No, of course not. What is wrong?"

Angela gave her a scrutinizing look before sighing and continuing. Apparently she had left her wallet at the restaurant and it was stressing her out.

"We'll have to go back," Angela sighed. "And we won't be able to come back here if we want to make it home in time. Aunt Karen needs my help with the store."

"That's alright," Bella said. "If you want to look around some more, we can return another day. I'll pay for the clothes you've already picked out."

After Angela had profusely thanked Bella for fronting the money, they paid and said Alice goodbye. Bella smiled when they stepped outside. She had really enjoyed talking to Alice; she seemed to be a sweet girl. A very pretty one at that, too.

It was only when Bella and Angela were well on their way to the restaurant that a thought suddenly hit her. Gasping sharply, she came to a stop.

"What's wrong? Angela asked, startled.

Bella glanced at her friend with wide eyes before trailing her gaze down to her hands. Her _bare_ hands.

She had not seen a thing.

Bella rapidly thought back to everything she had done, trying to figure out what had happened. Lost in thought, she did not struggle as Angela led her to a bench at the side of the stress. Her friend sat her down, and was now looking at her with concern clearly present in her brown eyes.

 _Eyes._

The golden eyes.

* * *

 _"The eyes are the windows to the soul."_

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you very much for the lovely reviews! Also, thanks to everyone who favorited/followed. Please let me know what you think of this first chapter!**

 **\- Laura**


	3. Waves of Change

**{Waves of Change}**

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay?" Angela asked again, following Bella into the house.

Bella took in a deep breath. "I'm fine Ange, really, I just caught off guard for a minute there, I'm sorry for freaking out on you. I really didn't mean to scare you, thanks for bringing me home."

Angela looked her over once more before deciding Bella must be speaking the truth and smiled. "It was no problem at all."

Bella shrugged her coat off, hanging it on the hook near the door, toeing out of her converse and making her way to the kitchen. Angela trailed behind her, sitting down at the kitchen table. She watched as Bella busied herself with the kettle before speaking up. "I had fun today, we should definitely go out more."

Bella laughed, grabbing two mugs from the overhead cupboard. "Sure, but let's wait with our trips until the weather is slightly warmer. I felt like my ears would freeze off when we were walking the streets."

"Okay," Angela easily agreed, looking down at her own hands, which were still numb too. When she glanced back up, her expression was one of mischief. "Now that we're talking about temperature, someone totally had the hots for you today."

Bella turned around abruptly, a blush rapidly spreading across her cheeks, brining color to the otherwise pale face. "Angela Weber!"

"What?" Angela asked, blinking innocently. "It's true."

"It most definitely is not," Bella argued as she moved back to the counter to finish making tea. Throwing away the teabag, she picked the mugs up and carried them over to the kitchen table, placing one in front of Angela. With a sigh she took a seat on the opposite side, warming her hands on her mug before quietly muttering, "she was very pretty, though."

Angela grinned victoriously, but did not continue her teasing. She knew it was not an easy topic for Bella to talk about and understood that if something came from it, she would hear about it soon.

The two of them drank their tea and chatted for a bit until Angela got a message from her aunt, saying she had to make her way home. Bella waved her goodbye from the kitchen window, watching until the car drove out of sight.

When Charlie came home from work several hours later, he found Bella sitting cross-legged on the couch in the living room. She was typing furiously on her laptop, lightly humming to the music which was playing from her headphones. He called her name, but she was so engrossed in her writing that she did not hear him.

Charlie smiled and went into the kitchen to grab some drinks before returning and tapping on her shoulder. With a gasp Bella turned around, her tense form quickly relaxing when her eyes met her dad's.

"Hey Dad," she said, blushing as she took off the headphones and hung them around her neck. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was already this late. How was work?"

"It was alright," Charlie answered, seating himself on the couch next to her.

Bella raised her brows. "Just alright?"

Charlie grinned. "Got to catch some criminals, chased a few burglars. You know, the usual."

"Yeah right," Bella snorted.

"I'll start making dinner shortly," Charlie said as he stood up from the couch. "Any requests?"

Bella thought for a moment. "No, not really. Do you need my help?"

After she had been assured that she was not needed in the kitchen, she turned back to the screen and scanned over the words she had written. Writing was something she had loved to do ever since she first learned to read, it was a way for her to vent and let out her emotions without burdening someone else. Not too long ago, it had been the thing to keep her sane when the world around her had seemed to crumble down.

With a sigh Bella saved the file and closed the laptop, placing it on the coffee table. She stood up, stretching her back as her eyes sought out the clock that hung on the wall above the television. It was nearing eight, meaning that her friends would probably be home by now. Picking up her phone she scrolled through her contacts.

The phone only rang once before she was connected.

"Bella! How are you doing?"

"Hey Carmen," Bella smiled. "I'm doing alright. I'm sorry, but I don't have a lot of time before I'm having dinner, could I maybe speak to Eleazar for a moment?"

"Of course! He's in the shed with Kate right now, if you hang on for a minute I'll go and get him."

Bella did not hear anything for a moment, and she moved to sit back on the couch but rethought her actions. With one last glance towards the kitchen, she made her way upstairs instead, entering her room and shutting the door.

"Bella?"

"Hi," she said, seating herself on the bed.

"Is something wrong?"

"That depends on how you look at the situation," Bella started, sighing. "But first I would appreciate it if you explained why on earth there is a vampire in Anchorage? A vegetarian one, at that. Didn't you know?"

It was silent for a moment. "You've met one of them?"

"One of them?" Bella asked incredulously. "There are more?"

"I am terribly sorry I was unable to inform you beforehand," Eleazar said. "But it seems that some of our friends made a last-minute decision to move. We did not know about any of it until we arrived home half an hour ago to find their message."

Bella groaned, leaning her head into her hand. "How did this happen? Isn't it true that vampires don't deal well with change? You'd think they would want to plan such a thing at least a few months in advance."

"Would you be able to come over tomorrow? It will be easier to explain the entire story in person, and we can make some agreements."

"I can't," Bella grimaced. "Sunday's are Dad's father-daughter days. I'm pretty sure we're going fishing again, or something. What about Monday, after school?"

"That could work," it sounded hesitantly.

"But?" Bella prompted.

"Several of the vampires will be attending the local high school."

Bella groaned. "Well, that will be interesting, for sure. Do they know about me? Have they heard something?"

"No, they do not know of anything yet. If you want us to, we can inform them, but we have not mentioned out involvement with you."

Bella sat in silence for a moment, but soon came to a decision. "Alright, I will come over after school. Please don't inform the new coven about me, I don't think it is necessary, at least for now."

"That I can do."

"Is there anything else I should know?" Bella asked.

"Well," Eleazar started. "Three of the members are gifted. An Empath, Telepath and Psychic."

"Great," Bella said sarcastically. "Well, that will be challenge to evade without much of a headache. Thank you for telling me, though."

"Are you sure you do not want to meet up earlier to practice your defenses?"

Bella sighed. "No, I'll be alright."

"I will see you Monday, then," he said.

"Until Monday."

Only seconds after she had ended the conversation, her dad called up to tell her dinner was ready. Bella left her phone on her bed and made her way down the stairs, entering the kitchen right as Charlie placed the food on the table.

The coming week would be interesting for sure.

Charlie had indeed planned a father-daughter outing that Sunday, although they did not go fishing. (A hobby he had for some reason really taken to when he had settled down after years of wandering through the country) Instead, they went hiking up one of the many trails of Forks' forests, ending their trip with a meal at the local diner.

Monday started like any other day. Charlie left for work early, and Bella woke up at the sound of her alarm. Once she had slapped the snooze button at least ten times, she finally dragged herself out of bed, pulling on some socks and making her way down the stairs with squinted eyes and hair that pointed in all directions. She shuffled towards the counter, smiling as she spotted the lunch bag, before moving on to the coffee machine, noting with delight there was still some hot coffee left. Picking her favorite mug from the cupboard, she poured it full all the way to the rim. After taking an experimental sip to check if it would burn her mouth, she put the mug to her lips and downed it all at once.

God knows she would need it today.

It did not take too long for her to fully wake up now that she had some caffeine in her system, and she moved to make herself a bowl of cereal. Sitting down at the kitchen table, she scrolled through her messages and took some time to respond. Once all the cereal was gone, she rinsed her bowl in the sink and put it in the dishwasher, going back upstairs when she had cleared the countertop.

Now she had to try and fix whatever was going on with her hair today.

Standing in front of the mirror, she grabbed a brush and pulled it through her hair, grimacing as it got caught in the tangles. A few minutes of torture later, she decided to just give up and threw her hair in a ponytail instead with the lone elastic band that lay in the bathroom. She glanced at her reflection, looking into her own pale blue eyes and taking a few deep breaths to calm the flurry of nerves in her stomach. Although she refused to admit it out loud, the idea of meeting unfamiliar vampires made her anxious.

A honk shook her out of her thoughts and Bella checked her hair once more before running downstairs. She quickly grabbed her bag, packing her lunch, and slipped into her shoes. Taking the coat from the hook, she put it on, simultaneously stepping outside and locking the door. Turning around, she zipped her coat up and slung her backpack onto her shoulder, walking to the end of the driveway where Angela was waiting in her car.

"Good morning," Bella said, climbing into the passenger seat.

"Hey!" Angela said, grinning widely. "Guess what?"

She did not give Bella a chance to answer as she immediately continued. "Isaac and Joshua are coming to visit us in a few weeks."

"Really?" Bella asked surprised. "That's amazing! How did you convince your parents?"

Angela backed out of the driveway and explained what had happened during the phone call she had had this morning. Bella smiled as she heard the excitement in Angela's voice; she knew Angela really missed her little twin brothers, who she had not seen in nearly a year now.

Even though the age gap was big, they had always gotten along, and Angela held a fierce love for them. Bella was happy to hear that they would be reunited soon.

"Would you like to come over this afternoon?" Angela asked as they drove into the school's parking lot.

Bella shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I can't. I have an appointment with Dr Denali later today."

Angela smiled. "I understand, we'll just hang out another time."

"What's your first class?" Bella asked, stepping out of the car when Angela had turned it off.

"Chemistry," Angela groaned. "We're going to prepare for next week's test."

"Good luck," Bella said solemnly. "I'm off to English. See you later?"

Angela grinned. "Same time and place as usual, babe."

With a wave they were both off to the separate buildings. Bella entered the classroom, glancing around and, with a mumbled greeting to Mr. Mason, she found her way to her usual seat in the back of the class, where she shrugged out of her coat. Other students were now slowly filing in as they were nearing the start of the first period. Bella took her books out of her bag, laying them on the table and opening her notebook. Waiting for the bell to ring, she mindlessly doodled some trees.

For lunch break, Bella met up with Angela in the cafeteria, where they waited in line to get Angela some food before seating themselves at an empty table. More people joined them and soon everyone was engaged in the conversation. Bella pretended not to notice Angela's blush when Ben Cheney sat down in the empty chair next to her.

Bella was engaged in a serious discussion on the benefits of chocolate (there were many) when Jessica leaned over the table, waiting with eager eyes until she had the attention of their group.

Bella frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Jessica threw a pointed look to the table in the corner of the cafeteria. "I'm talking about them."

Bella followed her gaze and tuned out of the conversation, where Lauren and Angela were now asking questions that fueled Jessica's gossip. She quickly spotted the Cullens and took a good look at the unfamiliar faces. It really should not have been a surprise that Jessica was talking about the new kids.

There were five of them: three boys and two girls. They were quietly chatting amongst each other, picking at the food on their trays. With a jolt, Bella realized Alice, from the little boutique in Anchorage, was amongst them. As if she could read her thoughts, Alice turned around, eyes widening before she composed herself and waved. Bella waved back before returning her attention to the group at her table, who were all staring at her now.

Bella blinked. "What?"

They threw here some more curious looks and shot some questions at her, but Bella shook them off. The others soon got the idea and left her alone to her thoughts.

Bella knew the new coven consisted of vegetarians; Alice's golden eyes did not tell lies, and Eleazar had also confirmed as much. It piqued her interest, knowing from experience it was rare to choose that route in the undead life. Well, if the coven decided to stay in the area for a while, she would probably get the chance to ask them a few questions.

There was no doubt that things would be changing soon.

* * *

 _"In the waves of change we find our true direction."_

* * *

 **A/N: Hello! It has been quite a while since I posted, and I apologize for that, but I was busy with work and finals. Thank you very much for reviewing, favouriting and following my story, it makes me very happy! I hope you enjoyed this new chapter, please leave a review to let me know what you think. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas (or anything else you celebrate) and I'll be back with another chapter as soon as I can manage!**

 **\- Laura**


	4. Ghosts of the Past

**{Ghosts of the Past}**

* * *

Relief washed over Bella when the school bell finally rand, signaling the end of the day. Her head was pounding with all the effort she had to put into maintaining the mental wall which kept the past at bay. Right now, there was nothing she wanted more than to go home, crawl into her bed and fall asleep, but she had promised Eleazar she would come over and she knew they needed to have an important conversation.

She shoved her history textbook into her bag and stood up from her seat near the back of the classroom, slinging the backpack onto her shoulder. With a wave to Angela, she weaved through the tables and made her way outside, to the parking lot. There, near the road, a tall blonde was leaning against a painfully white car.

Bella smiled as she neared. "Good afternoon."

Tanya looked up from her phone and grinned. "It has been too long since we got together."

"We saw each other last week," Bella said, raising her brows in challenge.

Tanya shrugged, shaking the comment off and motioned for Bella to get into the car. "Time crawls when nothing interesting happens."

The curious gazes of the students in the parking lot followed them as they backed out and got onto the road. It had caused a lot of gossip when the Denalis had first picked her up from school, but most people were kind of used to it now.

Bella slouched down into her seat, relaxing with a sigh. It would take them over an hour to get to the Denali's house, meaning she would have some time to order her thoughts before the fun could start. As they drove along the increasingly empty roads, the pressure in her head – which she had been feeling since lunch – faded away at last, leaving her with a dull headache. She pressed her forehead against the cold glass of her window and took a deep breath.

"Did you have a difficult time today?"

Bella glanced over at Tanya. "You could say that, yes. Those new vamps made my head ache to the point where I had trouble keeping up my defenses."

Tanya pulled a face. "It must have been their gifts, if they gave you such trouble. While Alice and Jasper have some kind of control, Edward is not as trained in that department."

"Is he the Empath, Telepath or Prescient?" Bella asked, realizing she had never actually been told any of their names. Well, except for Alice's, that is.

"Edward is the Telepath," Tanya answered. "Have you seen any of them today? He's the one with the reddish hair."

Bella made a noise of confirmation before looking back outside at the forest they were passing through. "I saw all of them during lunch. They are quite the talk of the town."

By the time they reached the Denali's house – which was practically built in the middle of -nowhere – Bella was half-asleep in her seat. Tanya shook her awake and helped the stumbling girl out of the car before they made their way to the front door, where Carmen was already waiting for them.

"Good afternoon," she said with a smile, carefully pulling Bella into a warm hug. "It's great to have you back. How was school today?"

Bella smiled, stepping inside when Carmen released her. She toed her sneakers off and got out of her coat, leaving both on the bench in the hallway. "It was alright, I guess."

"She got a headache," Tanya corrected as she too came inside and closed the door. "I believe we need to have a talk with our _friends_ soon, about unnecessarily using their gifts without permission of the recipient."

Bella threw Tanya an annoyed glare, but the latter simply stared right back at her. After a few seconds Bella gave in with a sigh. She looked down and bit her lip, shaking her head as she made her way over to the kitchen. "Yeah, that would be great."

She greeted Eleazar, who was seated at the kitchen table with a pile of photos in his hands and grabbed herself a glass from the cupboard, filling it with water. She downed it all at once, placing the empty glass on the counter with a thud.

Bella turned around and watched the others in silence, but quickly decided to just get it over yet. Serious conversations like these made her terribly uncomfortable, and she did not like the changes the Cullen coven had brought. Not that there was much she could do about it.

"So," she said, sitting down in one of the empty chairs. "Please explain everything that's going on."

And they did.

Eleazar began, explaining how he had met Carlisle a few centuries ago, back when he was still staying with the Volturi. They never spoke much with each other during that time, but after he left Volterra along with Carmen they met again. Carlisle's perspective on feeding piqued their interest and they soon joined Tanya's coven, who were like-minded on the topic, reaching the part of the story Bella had been told before.

Since Eleazar had first met Carlisle, the Cullen coven had grown a lot. First Edward, the Telepath, joined. Next was Esme, the coven leader's mate. Rosalie followed, with Emmett being the last of Carlisle's changelings. Alice and Jasper – the Psychic and Empath – found the Cullens on their own accord and concluded the coven.

Bella watched with interest as every single member of the new coven was pointed out to her on the pictures Eleazar was holding.

"You can imagine our surprise when we came home from our hunting trip last weekend to find the entire family, minus Alice and Edward, in our front yard," Tanya added when Eleazar had finished his story. "Apparently Alice had been planning on opening her own boutique, and she'd had a feeling that Anchorage would be her best bet. And thus, it came to be that the entire coven decided to move to Alaska."

Bella groaned, feeling this sudden change would cause a lot more stress than she had hoped to have in her last few years of high school. "Have you told Aro yet?"

The awkward glances the others shared were enough of an answer.

Bella raised a brow. "Really? He's going to be pissed, you know?"

"Which is why we hoped you could call to inform him?" Eleazar said, his statement turning into a question halfway into his sentence.

"Alright," Bella agreed, knowing it was about time she caught up with her great-great-something-uncle anyway. "I'll do it later tonight." At the relieved expressions, she pointed her finger at them and added, "But you'll owe me! Greatly!"

The others quickly accepted the condition, effectively putting an end to the conversation about the Cullens. Eleazar and Carmen left to go upstairs and sped some time together, leaving Bella alone with Tanya. However, the backdoor slammed open before she could even utter a word and Kate ran inside, skidding to a stop in front of the kitchen table.

"Bella!" she said delightedly, her face lighting up with a smile. "Did you know you are my most favorite person in the entire world?"

Bella narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "What is it you want from me?"

Kate pouted. "Come on, I don't always want something when I compliment someone."

"That's debatable," Bella mumbled.

Kate ignored the comment and took a seat opposite of the other two. "How is our little Seer doing?"

Bella pulled a face. "Don't call me that, it sounds weird. And I'm doing fine."

"I don't have to go after any of your… _admirers_ later tonight?"

"No." Bella shook her head as a blush crept onto her cheeks. "No need to electrocute anyone."

"Well, in that case, maybe you have some time to help me instead?" Kate asked.

The innocent tone of Kate's question immediately had her on edge again. "You _do_ want something from me."

Kate opened her mouth to start talking, but Bella interrupted her. "If this plan of yours includes me reading some kind of past, the answer is no."

Bella knew she was spot on with her assumption when Kate sagged into her chair with a disappointed grumble. Irina entered the kitchen right at that moment and grinned at the pouting face. Having caught the last part of the conversation, she quickly pieced together what had happened.

"I told you so," she sung, gliding into the empty chair next to Kate before turning her attention to Bella. "She is trying to work out how to construct a smartphone, but the internet is no help on that front. All of the companies she has tried to contact have ignored her this far and she needs the help of a human who has knowledge of such things."

Tanya shook her head with a deep, tired sigh. "Maybe it is time to move on to something else. Tell me, Bella, what do you think about watching a movie?"

They settled on the couch in the living room and helped Bella to choose a movie on Netflix. Her homework was soon forgotten as she relaxed and chatted a bit with the others. When dinner time came around, they ushered her to stay seated and Carmen soon handed her a very nutritious meal of boxed mac and cheese.

After just a little while of interacting with the Denalis, Bella had discovered that none of the Denalis were particularly good cooks. Though she had politely eaten the first few – either raw or burned – meals she got presented, she had gingerly hinted that she did not mind cooking for herself, or having instant meals. Now it was rare that she would find one of the vampires cooking intricate dishes.

She preferred to keep her health at least somewhat intact.

Bella yawned when the post-credits rolled past on the screen and she threw a glance at the lit-up screen of her phone. "I think I should go home, if I still want to get some sleep tonight."

Tanya volunteered to bring her back and they made their way over to the garage after Bella had said her goodbyes to the others. The drive was mainly spent in silence, seeing that Bella felt completely worn out. However, when she finally arrived home and made her way inside, sleep was quickly forgotten. Her dad, who should have been in bed already for his early shift of tomorrow, was hunched over a pile of papers on the kitchen table. Bella's heart sunk as she saw the frustrated look on his face; his brows were creased, his hand supporting his head.

She alerted him to her presence by knocking on the doorframe. Charlie's head shot up, the concentrated look fading into a soft smile when he saw his daughter. "Hi Bells."

"What are you doing up this late?" Bella asked, stepping into the kitchen and taking a seat. Her eyes trailed down to the papers strewn out across the kitchen table, scanning the first few words she came across. "Visitation right? What is all this about?"

Charlie sighed and slumped forward in his chair, catching Bella's confused gaze. The action made him look at least ten years older than he was. "Harriet's lawyer called Mr. Lagmann, who then called me."

Bella stiffened at the name. "What did she want?"

Charlie shifted uncomfortably. "She is demanding that the judge will reconsider her visitation rights."

"You can't be serious," Bella said, her eyes wide. "She wanted _nothing_ to do with me after – well, you know – and now she wants to see me again? It has been two years! What has gotten into her?"

"I don't know," Charlie sighed.

"I will call Uncle Aro," Bella decided, leaning down and frantically looking through her bag. "He helped us out last time, I'm sure we can find a way out of whatever this is."

Charlie, however, halted her movements. "Bella, these are legal matters." He frowned. "She had a right to ask for it, as your mother, although we can try to plead for denial, if you want to. But you're still just 16, and if the judge decides…"

"There's nothing we can really do," Bella finished.

When Bella finally lay in bed, several hours later, she found it was impossible to fall asleep. Her mind would not let her rest and she could not help but imagine every single possible (horrible) scenario the recent changes could bring. Not only would she have to worry about her interactions with the Cullens, but now the demons of her past also came back to haunt her.

It had all happened so fast. Just a week ago, everything was fine: there was no drama and she had known exactly what she could expect every day. She craved the safety of the routines and habits she had built up in the past years, she needed them to stay sane. Now, however, her near future had been thrown off course and the uncertainty it brought played in on her anxiety.

Bella stared at the off-white ceiling that was highlighted by a single ray of moonlight that peeked through the curtains. The only sounds she could hear were those of the ticking clock in the hallway and her dad's muted snores from the room next to hers. Her chest heaved as a weight pressed down on her lungs, making it difficult to breathe properly. There was absolutely no way she could fall asleep.

With a sigh Bella rolled over to her side, reaching out from under the warm covers to switch on the small light on her nightstand. She grabbed the book that lay next to it, opening it at the bookmark as she lay back down.

Time ticked by as her eyes scanned the words.

* * *

 _"The ghosts of the past speak to all who will listen."_

* * *

 **A/N: I'm very sorry for the long wait since I uploaded the last chapter, but I'm _finally_ back. I decided to make finishing my other story my priority, but by the time I had done that some issues in Real Life came up which I had to deal with first. I re-wrote/edited the first few chapters of this story to get back into it, and I luckily found the motivation to continue again. Thank you all for your lovely reviews, please leave me one again to tell me what you think of this new chapter! I'll try and upload again soon.**

 **\- Laura**


	5. The Mountains Are Calling

**{The Mountains Are Calling}**

* * *

Time is a funny thing. Generally, it passes by at an even pace, though in Bella's experience it had a tendency to crawl at times. However, when her alarm sounded that morning, she felt as if not even an hour had gone by since the moment she had fallen asleep. Bella reached out her hand from under the covers and blindly felt around for the alarm clock, slamming her hand down on the button so it finally stopped making that irritating noise.

With a yawn, she sat upright and pushed her wild hair out of her face. She leaned down to the ground and picked up the book she had been reading last night; it must have fallen off the bed when she fell asleep. She quickly put the bookmark in between he pages and returned the book to her nightstand.

Bella's gaze fell on the numbers displayed by the clock and she froze for a second until she remembered why she had set her alarm this early: she still had to call Aro before she went to school today. Yesterday she had been way too tired to even think rationally and she had not been in the mood for a late-night call to Italy. However, she was not sure whether she had done herself a favor by postponing it to the morning, as her eyes were already well on their way to close again.

She shook herself awake, suppressing another yawn and decided it was probably best to get ready first and have some breakfast. Hopefully that would help to make her sound and look at least slightly more awake when she made the call.

Her dad was already sitting in the kitchen when she came down the stairs. He looked surprised to see her up, but simply rose from his chair to fix her a plate with breakfast.

"Thanks," Bella muttered when he put it down in front of her. She poured herself a cup of coffee from the can that stood on the table.

"No problem," her dad said. "Is there a reason you are up this early? Did I miss something?"

"I've got to call Uncle Aro," Bella answered, taking a bite of the scrambled eggs. At her dad's knowing look she hurried to explain, "Not about yesterday, well, we'll probably talk about that too, but he just wanted to know how I was doing. It has been a while since I last called."

Her dad nodded in understanding.

The remaining part of their breakfast was spent in a comfortable silence. At a quarter to six her dad had to go to work, leaving Bella on her own as she finished getting ready. Right when the clock struck six, she put her packed schoolbag in the hallway and made her way to the living room with her laptop under her arm. When she was comfortably situated on the couch, she opened the laptop and opened Skype.

The Italians were already online, and it took just a few seconds until Bella was connected. She narrowed her eyes at the screen and started laughing.

 _"Good day, young one_!" she heard, before he paused. _"What is it you are laughing at, Isabella?"_

"Aro," she snorted. "You have to fix the camera, all I can see is your lower body."

The image on her screen blurred for a second, but low and behold, Aro's head finally came into view.

 _"There, is this better?"_ At Bella's nod, a grin appeared on his face. _"Ah, it has been such a long time! How do you fare? To what do I owe this pleasure of talking to you?"_

"Good morning," Bella answered, ignoring the vampire's antics. "I'm alright, though I do have some things we need to talk about."

 _"What is bothering you? I take it the Denali coven is still treating you well?"_

"They are," Bella reassured. "But, well, the thing is, they are no longer the only vampires in the area."

Aro was silent for a moment. _"I beg your pardon?"_

Bella shifted on the couch and looked away from the screen for a second. "I went shopping with my friend last week, and came across a member of the Cullen coven. They have all moved to a house near Anchorage, and five of them are attending my high school."

 _"The Cullen coven?"_ Aro said, his eyes wide. _"Heavens above! That must be Carlisle's coven, I have heard much about them, but I haven't seen my friend in years! And he was such a fine young man, though he warded off all my attempts of innocent flirting…"_

"Watch out, Aro, your inner teenage boy is showing," Bella commented dryly. "You're getting off topic, I was telling you they have moved here. Near us. And, well, they probably already know I'm different because Tanya picked me up after school yesterday."

 _"Ay,"_ Aro said, now looking a bit more concerned. _"I did not wish to expose you to this all. They will have to be informed of our arrangement, if we do not want to cause uproar and incorrect speculations. Would you feel comfortable talking to them yourself?"_

"Alright," Bella complied. "I guess that really is one of the few options I have?"

 _"Well, I would not mind paying a visit to the Americas, but it would most likely only serve to frighten the Cullen coven,"_ Aro slowly said. Bella spotted the change of light in his eyes as soon as the words had left his mouth, and she shook her head before he had the chance to speak up again.

"No, don't you even think about it," she threatened before sighing. "I will call to arrange a meeting later today."

 _"That would probably be for the best,"_ Aro said. _"Now, was there anything else on your mind?"_

"Harriet wants the judge to reconsider visitation rights."

The light in Aro's eyes dimmed down as his jaw tensed. _"Please do explain why that atrocious woman thinks she can come anywhere near you."_

Bella told him everything her dad had explained to her last night, adding that Charlie did not think the Volturi – or 'Uncle Aro', as he knew them – could do much.

Aro listened without interrupting even once. When Bella was done, he nodded. _"I will look into it, and see what we can do for you. However, I also believe they will not be allowed to let Harriet near you if it negatively affects your health in any way. We will stand beside you in this process either way."_

"Thank you," Bella said, feeling lighter now that she had heard the words coming from him. She had known she would have his support, but it did not really get through to her until he had said it.

 _"Now, I do believe it is time to move on to the more pleasurable topics,"_ Aro stated, catching Bella's attention. _"Do tell me, dear Isabella, did someone catch your eye recently?"_

Bella's face immediately flushed a bright red and she quickly exited the full screen whilst Aro's eyes widened. _"Someone did! Who is it? Is she-"_

"Okay, that's enough," Bella interrupted, dragging the cursor across the screen. "It was nice to talk to you again, bye!"

Aro's near-manic laughter was abruptly cut off when she ended the video call. Bella blew out a long breath and held her cold hands to her overheated cheeks. Maybe it was time she left for school.

With a bit of effort her lovely old truck started, and Bella immediately cranked up the heating. Her breath still formed little clouds in the air, but hopefully it would be warmer by the time she arrived at Angela's house.

They did not live far apart, and it was only a few minutes later that Bella parked near the entrance of _Newton's Outfitters_. The Newton family, including Angela, lived in the apartment right above their store, and the door at the side of the building opened revealing a bundled-up girl.

"Good morning," Bella said as Angela climbed up into the passenger's seat. She took the paper cup of coffee that was presented to her with a murmured "thanks" and drove out of the parking lot.

They arrived at school with enough time to spare to make a detour to both of their lockers and dump some books. With considerably lighter backpacks they split up, each going to their respective classes. Bella checked her schedule and climbed up the stairs to the seconds floor. When she entered the German classroom, she froze as her eyes fell upon a familiar figure in the back.

"Hey," Alice greeted, looking up from her phone. "It's nice to see you again."

"H- hi," Bella stuttered out, taking a tentative step forward. They were the only ones in the room for now, and her shoes squeaked as she moved on.

"I'm Alice," Alice said. "I don't know if you remember? We met last weekend."

"I know," Bella nodded whilst she inwardly cursed herself for not being able to come up with a more intelligent answer.

"Would you maybe sit next to me in this class?" Alice asked, tilting her head. "I'm new here, I don't know anyone except for you."

"Sure," Bella said, putting her bag on the table next to Alice's and sitting down. When she turned back to face the other, she frowned. "But I thought- Aren't you a senior? You were definitely not in this class yesterday."

"Oh, right," Alice said, waving it off. "The school messed up, they accidentally put me and my brother in the wrong year. It must have been confusing, with all my siblings transferring. My parents called in yesterday afternoon to have it fixed."

"Okay," Bella drawled, although she did not really buy into that story. It was a bit strange they would want to go down a year: had she been a vampire, she would not have voluntarily added an extra year to her high school career. Whatever floated their boat, she guessed. And she respected that the Cullens would have some secrets of their own. It was not any of her business, either way.

They chatted a bit for a few minutes until the lesson started, and Bella soon discovered – though it was anything but a surprise – that Alice's passion lay in the fashion industry. When she subtly steered the conversation into that direction, the topaz eyes started to twinkle and she spent a while asking more about it. When Alice later apologized for monopolizing the conversation, Bella shook off the excuse and reassured that she did not mind listening.

The German lesson itself passed fast enough and they were soon off to their next classes. Bella spotted Alice in a few of her other classed that day and they often managed to find seats near each other. She even re-introduced Alice to Angela, and the two hit off quickly.

Alice's 'brother', who had also been switched to junior year, turned out to be Edward, the Telepath. He sat next to her in Biology and politely introduced himself before spending the entire hour looking at her with an intense – bordering on angry – gaze. That, she guessed, was because of the defensive wall she had built up in her mind. She could feel that he was trying to get around it, once again, and by the time the lesson was finished, she had a splitting headache.

She could not wait to have a word with him soon.

The majority of the student body again spent lunch hour gawking at the Cullens, although it was not as bad as the day before. Bella herself did not have any problems averting her gaze, and got Angela to focus on her food too. Still, none of the students actually dared to go up to the vampires, which meant the students at least had some sense of self-preservation. She did expect that to wane away soon, when they got used to the imposing presence. Bella no longer had trouble keeping her attention to whatever she was working on, seeing as she had been around vampires for more than two years now. The only ones who did still impose fear in her, were the more vicious nomads she had met.

When she got home that afternoon, having dropped Angela off at Newton's, she remembered that she still had some business to take care off before she could relax. One text to Tanya and a few seconds of waiting provided her with the phone number of the Cullen residence and after a bit of stalling she made herself comfortable on the couch in the living room.

She really hated making phone calls to strangers.

 _"Hello?"_

Bella took in a deep breath. "Could I talk to Dr Carlisle Cullen?"

"May I ask who is calling?" the gentle voice asked.

"My name is Isabella Swan," Bella answered. "I would like to speak to Dr Cullen concerning some issues which have come up, now that he moved here. I was referred to him by Tanya Denali."

She thought it wise to leave the Volturi out of the conversation for now.

"Of course, I will go and find him, if you have a moment," the woman said, a hint of bewilderment in her voice.

-oOo-

Ten minutes later Bella hung up and slouched back, closing her eyes. She had been nervous that Dr Cullen would not believe her when she disclosed her relations to the supernatural world, but he had seemed to be open-minded. And, as he had told her, his 'children' (which Bella was quite sure to be code for 'Alice') had already talked a bit about her. He had invited her to come over after school the next day to explain several things from both sides. Tanya was going to be there too, to represent her coven.

Bella stood up from the couch, halting for a moment as she realized she had no idea what she should do now. She would certainly not be able to focus on her homework. An idea soon jumped into her mind, and she sprung back into motion, moving to the kitchen to boil some water to fill a thermos with tea and grabbing her book from her night stand upstairs. A belated glance at the weather forecast luckily told her it would not be snowing or raining anytime soon, so she sent off a quick message to her dad before bundling herself up in her winter coat. She found her pair of sturdy boots at the back door and was soon off to the woods which lay right behind the house.

She had done this hike so often it was something she did mindlessly by now. When she reached the water stream well into the forest, she dropped her bag and lay down a piece of plastic on top of the snow. Pulling her beanie down over her ears, she sat down carefully and pulled her book out of her bag.

As she got lost in the story of tragedy, love and magic, she never noticed the girl sitting in the shadow of the trees on the opposite side of the stream. Alice had watched the arrival with curiosity, a book of her own held in her hand. When Bella was settled, she slowly returned her gaze to the words in front of her and she was soon emerged in a whole other world.

The restlessness which had possessed Alice for such a long time, settled down gently.

* * *

 _"The mountains are calling and I must go."_

* * *

 **A/N: Bella's dislike for making phone calls is something she may or may not have inherited from me... But seriously, who likes calling strangers? *shudder* Anyway, Aro and Bella's relationship is going to be an interesting one to explore, seeing as the first is thousands of years old, but still trapped in the body of a 'young adult'. That makes me tempted to write him as a mix of my (very lovely) grandparents and my brother... Okay, that's definitely weird.**

 **Thank you to all who favorited and followed my story in the past weeks (month?)! Please leave me a review today, to tell me your opinion on this new chapter, it would totally make my day to hear your thoughts. Also, please tell me if you notice any mistakes. Next chapter will include the meeting with the Cullens, and definitely more time for Alice and Bella to bond. I will upload again as soon as I can manage!**

 **\- Laura**


	6. Complete Honesty

**{Complete Honesty}**

* * *

When Bella walked into the cafeteria the next day, her attention was pulled away by Alice, who was waving at her to come over. Reluctantly she changed her path and made her way over to the table in the corner of the room.

"Hey Bella," Alice said. "Would you have lunch with me today? My dad wanted to know a few things about this afternoon."

"I would have lunch with you," Bella slowly said, turning her head towards her regular table, "but I promised Angela-" She stopped herself when she saw that Angela was looking at her, sternly shaking her head. "Well, I guess Angela won't mind if I sit with you."

Alice laughed while Bella sat down in the empty chair next to hers. Bella dumped her bag on the floor and took a Tupperware box out from the main compartment, placing it on the table with a thud.

"So, what is it you wanted to ask me?"

Alice shifted in her chair to sit sideways, facing Bella. "Well, first of all, would you mind driving with us, instead of with Tanya? That way she won't have to make a detour, and since we're all going to the same place anyway…"

"Sure," Bella shrugged after a moment of thought, pulling the lid of her lunch and going in with her spork to take a bite of the pasta salad. "Just give me a moment to text Tanya to let her know."

"No need," Alice said with a smile that showed the dimples in her cheeks. "Already done."

Bella followed her gaze and saw that Edward, who nodded to her when their eyes met, had his phone in his hands already. "Ah, the Telepath, that's right."

"You already know?" Alice asked, raising her brows.

"Yes," Bella nodded. "But we should probably leave that conversation for this afternoon."

"Alright," Alice easily agreed. "Now, we would also like to know whether you wish to talk to the entire family? Or would you prefer to simply speak with Carlisle?"

"I- I guess it concerns you all," Bella answered, playing with her food. "I think it would be best to hear everything first-hand from me. That way we can just get any and all questions answered right there and then."

-oOo-

Whilst she entered the massive house behind the two younger 'children' of the Cullen family, Bella was trying to decide whether or not she had made the right decision by letting everyone attend the meeting. Sure, she still thought it would be best to let them all hear the story directly from her. However, sitting in a car with two not-quite-familiar vampires had already been an unnerving experience. She was definitely not looking forward to having _all_ of them looking at her with that ever-present curiosity.

Bella sighed softly and squared her shoulders. She had to calm down; she could not let her nerves get to her. There would be a time to freak out about everything, but that time was not now.

They walked into the tall hallway of the Cullen mansion, and Bella immediately spotted both Dr and Mrs Cullen, who were waiting for them. Tanya stood next to them and sent Bella an encouraging smile.

Bella smiled in response and stepped forward, presenting her gloved hand to Dr Cullen. "Good afternoon, Dr Cullen. It's good to finally meet you."

Dr Cullen nodded and shook her hand. "Likewise, Miss Swan. But please, do call me Carlisle."

"Only if you'll call me Bella," she answered, before moving on to properly greet Mrs Cullen."

"I'm Esme," Mrs Cullen told her. "I'm glad to meet you, we've heard so much about you."

"Now that we've gotten this formal part out of the way, I propose that we move this conversation to the living room," Tanya said, earning herself and irritated glare from Bella. "Oh, come on Bella, I've known the Cullens for literal decades. Trust me; they won't be insulted by a little less formality, no matter what your old man tried to teach you."

Bella simply sighed and shook her head, the amused looks of the Cullens emphasising the truth of Tanya's words. "Alright, lead me the way, then."

Edward offered to take her coat, which she slipped off, together with all her winter gear.

The living room was just as spotless as Bella would have expected from a vampire coven – one that did not have a Kate, that is. However, it did not take away from the effort she could see had been put into creating an actual _living_ space out of the room.

Bella took a seat in an armchair that gave her a perfect view of all the others. Not long after Esme had gotten her something to drink, the last two coven members of the coven came down the stairs and joined them.

"I believe introductions may be in order?" Carlisle asked. At Tanya's nod he proceeded, motioning to the blond guy sitting next to Alice. "Bella, meet Jasper, our resident Empath."

Jasper nodded politely, a gesture which Bella returned.

"You have already been introduced to Alice and Edward, as well as their gifts, I heard," Carlisle continued. "And Rosalie and Emmett conclude our family."

"It's nice to meet you all," Bella said.

Jasper seemed to be somewhat uncomfortable, but she could expect that from an Empath. Rosalie was still regarding her impassively, as she had been doing from the moment she had walked into the living room, but Bella knew better than to take offense. She recognized the closed-off stance since it had been a part of her own façade for a long time. Emmett's expression was the complete opposite of Rosalie's; his face was an open book and it told her that he thought the formal introductions were quite humorous. From the latter two's body language, Bella rapidly discerned that they were mates.

"Alright, where would you like to start?" Carlisle asked, interrupting her thoughts. "Is there anything you need to know about us before we continue?"

"No," Bella shook her head. "That won't be necessary. I think I should just start to explain the arrangement I have? You'll become a part of that now, so it'd be good to know about that probably. If there are any questions after that, I can try to answer those." She shrugged. "That is really the only reason I'm here."

"I agree," Tanya said. "However, before we start this, I'd like to warn you that nothing that will be revealed can leave this room. It would not bode well if others found out what Bella means to the Volturi, and I think you can imagine what would happen if Bella is endangered because of you."

The Cullen coven unanimously agreed to that without much thought, surprising Bella. Tanya smiled reassuringly though, and nodded. "You can continue now."

Bella opened her mouth, but suddenly realized that she had no idea how to do this. She had never before had to tell anyone about any of this; the Denalis had been included in the establishment of the agreement, and it was not something they really discussed these days.

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "So, uh, where should I start?"

Luckily Tanya came to her rescue. "Maybe explain the basics of your gift, and you can go from there?"

Bella let out a long breath. "Alright. Well, for kind of as long as I've known I have been able to see the past." She could see Carlisle's eyes lighten up in revelation, but he kept silent. "When I was younger, I would sometimes get flashes of the lives of the people I interacted with. Later – much, much later – I realized my ability was set in motion by eye-contact and touch, but it all happened so randomly back then, that it was impossible for me to connect it to those triggers.

"Nearly two and a half years ago, I was visiting Italy with my- my mother and her husband, when we went around the village Volterra. I was fourteen, I guess? And my ability had developed a lot by then. It was busy on the plaza and I got pushed around, making that my skin touched that of this woman and the sheer volume of her past immediately sent me into a near-catatonic state."

Bella heard Alice gasp and threw a small smile into her direction.

"When I woke up, I was told that I had been brought into the city hall of Volterra and I met Aro. He told me of his own gift and explained more about the vampires I had seen in Heidi's past."

"Why did Aro not kill you, or turn you for that matter? And how did you end up in the city hall in the first place?" Rosalie asked.

Bella's eyebrows rose at the blunt tone, but she soon composed herself. "Heidi recognized the gift-induced state I was in, from earlier experiences, and she brought me to Aro. He was easily able to establish that I was a witch with one touch, thought this contact then had me unconscious for longer, which was fun."

Bella noticed the near scandalized looks of the Cullens and added, "I have since then had a very enlightening conversation with him about the right to privacy." She winced as she felt the pressure in her head building up and moved her gaze to Edward. "Speaking of which, I would very much appreciate it if you would stop to try and enter my mind. The walls I put up are not so much in defence of the outside, but more so to contain my own ability. If you succeed in wearing them down, I'll probably end up in a coma again." _Or worse,_ she added in her mind.

Edward had the decency to look guilty as the others shot him scolding looks.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know," he said quietly, and at once the pressure in Bella's head receded.

"You are right, you should be _very_ sorry," Tanya responded, earning a soft sigh from Bella.

"It's alright," she told him. "Anyway, where was I?"

"You were explaining how you ended up in the city hall, and why Aro decided not to kill you," Carlisle supplied, leaning back into the couch.

"Right," Bella nodded. "Well, Aro realized my gift would be an asset to them, due to its objectiveness and whatnot. Later that day I met Marcus, who told us he could see a faint familial bond between us. I'm actually a descendant of Aro through several generations, which probably confirmed that I would not be killed. Family bonds, well, bonds of any kind really, are highly valued amongst vampires. Though, I guess you knew that already. And, uh, that kind of sums up why I'm still alive."

The Cullens were now looking at her with wide eyes. Their gazes burned into Bella's head, who sunk into herself, biting her lip nervously.

Carlisle noticed the girl's unease and visibly collected himself. He seemed to have a lot of questions, but ended up asking just one question that Bella had expected.

"I gather you will be changed once you are of age?"

But Bella shook her head. "As of right now? No, I won't."

Startled, Carlisle looked at the girl with a renewed gaze. "But surely-"

"That matter is none of your concern," Tanya interrupted. "What is important at the moment, is that you have been officially included in the arrangement about Bella's safety. Again, rumours of any of this cannot go out into the open."

"You, of course, have my word that none of us will tell a single soul," Carlisle reassured once more, slightly taken aback by Tanya's sudden harsh tone. "Now, is there anything else we should know?"

Bella shrugged as a blush crept up on her cheeks. "I don't know, is there anything you would like to ask me?"

"I believe you have given us quite a bit to think about," Esme smiled. "Thank you for telling us everything."

"No problem," Bella said, her face heating up even more.

"Well, I think this is where we conclude the meeting," Tanya stated, standing up from her seat. "I'll drop you off at home, or you could come over to ours for a while, if you want? It's still a few hours until your dad's shift ends."

"Or you could stay here?" Alice proposed, making all heads turn in surprise.

Alice looked so adorably excited at the prospect of spending more time together, that Bella nearly gave in without a thought.

"I would love to get to know you better," Alice continued. "I can drop you off back at your house whenever you want, we don't live too far apart."

Bella hesitated and looked at Tanya, who simply raised a brow as if to tell her to make a decision. She turned back around. "You wouldn't mind doing that?"

"Of course not, silly," Alice grinned. "I would not have offered if I did, right?"

"Alright then," Bella agreed with a faint blush. She immediately knew it had been the right decision when she saw Alice's face lighten up in delight.

"We're going to have so much fun!" Alice said, rising from the couch and grabbing Bella's hand to pull her up and along towards the staircase in the hallway. Bella snatched her bag which held her phone from the spot next to her shoes just in time before she was led up the stairs.

"Please don't mind the mess, I didn't think to clean up…"

The remaining part of the Cullen coven followed the two girls suit as they trickled out of the living room, leaving Tanya along with Carlisle and Esme.

Carlisle noticed the thoughtful look on Tanya's face and motioned for her to sit back down. She mindlessly accepted his invitation, finally averting her gaze from where Bella and Alice had disappeared out of sight.

"What is troubling you?" Carlisle asked.

Tanya was startled out of her thoughts and met his eyes. "She- she should not have been able to do that."

"What do you mean?" Esme asked, leaning closer.

"Alice," Tanya explained. "The way she grabbed Bella's bare hands… it should have made her fall unconscious, at the very least. You heard what she told you about what Aro and Heidi's touch did to her."

Carlisle's eyes widened. "How come she didn't, then? Fall unconscious, I mean."

"Honestly? I have no idea," Tanya sighed, shaking her head. "What I do know, however, is that Bella knew Alice's touch would not hurt her. Whether it was through instinct, or actually _knowingly_. Her reflexes rival that of a vampire by now, she could have pulled her arm out of the way in time, had she wanted to.

"Alice! Don't you dare!" they heard being shouted, before the door closed and cut off the noise.

Carlisle exchanged looks with Tanya. "I have a feeling our lives will become quite interesting."

* * *

 _"Complete honesty is not the same as full disclosure."_

* * *

 **A/N: The quote above quite accurately explains Bella's story: it is far from the _entire_ story. I tried to draw a line as to what she would tell a bunch of (practical) strangers, and what she would not tell just anyone (I hope I succeeded?) Later on, in a future chapter, there will be more on what happened during, as well as before, Bella's time in Italy. **

**Anyway, I'm sorry for the long wait, but I was very busy with studying for my exams at Uni. I finished writing this chapter nearly two weeks ago, but it was only today that I found time to edit everything. And it also happens to be my birthday :) Seriously, I'm officially old now. Please do leave me a review with your thoughts on this chapter, it makes me very happy if you do! I'll even send you a piece of virtual birthday cake in exchange for it. And also, don't hesitate to let me know if there are any mistakes you notice.**

 **I'll try to update the next chapter quicker than this time, but I can't promise anything, as with more exams coming up it's going to be a busy few weeks for me. Until next time!**

 **\- Laura**


	7. Dark Place

**{Dark Place}**

* * *

Just like Alice promised, she drove Bella back home later that afternoon, an hour before her dad returned from work. Bella had enough time left to get started with cooking and sat down at the kitchen table with her phone in her hand, opening her text messages as she waited for the food to heat. During the time she and Alice had spent together, they had exchanged phone numbers and now that they were not sitting right next to each other, they texted back and forth for a while. Bella caught herself grinning stupidly at the screen of her phone as Alice sent her a hilarious play-by-play narration of a fight that had broken out between her siblings.

It was like this that Charlie found his daughter that evening after work, bent forward over her phone, thumbs flying over the screen as she typed out a reply. He grinned and watched her for a minute from his place in the doorway, leaning on the doorpost. When she snorted again, biting her lip to contain her laughter, he straightened up and stepped forward to slap his hand down on her shoulder.

"Good evening!"

Bella thought she must have shot up at least a foot at the sudden movement, her heart jumping in her chest. Within a second, she had turned herself around and spotted her father, who looked way too pleased with himself. "Dad! Don't ever do that again, you nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"Now, don't exaggerate," her dad smirked, taking off his coat and draping it over the back of a chair. He pulled it out and sat down with a sigh. "How was your day? Did you hand out at Tanya's after school?"

"It was alright," Bella shrugged. "And Tanya actually introduced me to her extended family. They moved here last week, maybe you've heard of them, they're the Cullens? The kids go to Forks High and their father, Carlisle, works in the hospital."

"Ah," her dad hummed. "I met him a few days ago, he seems to be a great guy. A bit young, but great."

"Dad, _you're_ young," Bella deadpanned as she sent Alice a 'bye' and turned off her phone. "And you'll even look the part if you'd finally decide to shave that hideous moustache."

Her dad gasped in mock hurt. "This masterpiece? _Never_."

"Anyway," Bella sighed, knowing the topic was a lost cause. "I started on dinner…"

Her voice trailed off when she turned around and noticed that the potatoes that stood on the stove had completely overcooked. Her eyes widened and she slowly moved back to look her dad into the eye. "Shit."

Her dad, meanwhile, had gotten a mischievous glint in his eyes. " _Bella_ messes up a meal? That must have been one special person on your messages, honey."

"No, no," Bella shook her head. "We're not even getting into that."

"Alright," her dad said, holding his hands up in surrender. "I won't say a thing. But I do know that that" – he motioned to the pan – "is in no way salvageable. Pizza?"

"Sure," Bella sighed.

As was usual for a small town like theirs, it did not take long for their dinner to arrive. Bella poured the both of them something to drink and they seated themselves at the kitchen table.

"So," Bella said, swallowing a bite of her cheese pizza. "How was work?"

"It was okay," her dad nodded. "There were a couple of interesting cases today, actually, and one for which the department in Anchorage asked for our help."

"Cool," Bella hummed. "Did anything else happen?"

"Well," he said. "I got a call from Mr Lagman during lunch today."

Bella straightened up in her seat. "What did he say?"

"It seems that we may have been worrying ourselves too early," he told her. "You're sixteen now, of course, and you'll have to most say in the courtroom. Harriet can try and plead for visitation or custody all she wants, but as long as the judge deems me suitable to be your parent, you'll be able to say who you want to see. They can't force you to meet up with her if you don't want to."

"Oh." Bella sighed in relief. "So, I don't have to see her?"

Her dad shook his head. "No."

Bella nearly smiled in relief, but there was a glimpse of hesitancy in her dad's eyes that stopped her from doing so. "What is it?"

"Harriet-" he began slowly, before starting over. "Mr Lagman said that Harriet seems to be sincere in her actions."

"What do you mean?" Bella asked, her brows creasing in confusion.

"It means that she might actually be trying to make amends," he said. "And that she's not just doing this to spite me or you. Mr Lagman told me she wrote you a letter."

"Wait," Bella said incredulously. "She honestly wants to see me? The woman was all too happy to be rid of me. Now she wants me back? Seriously?"

"I don't know what her reasons are," her dad sighed. "And as I said, you'll have the biggest -say in all of this. It's all about your rights and health. Just- just think about it, alright?"

The rest of dinner was spent in silence.

Her mother was a constant subject on Bella's mind in the following week. The conversation with her dad had brought up some darker memories from before her time with him as well as all the feelings that came with them. Flashes of things she would much rather forget than relive played in her mind over and over again. It drove her crazy.

She still had to go to school, obviously, but the heavy and pressing thoughts took away all her will to get out of the house for anything else. Alice's text messages still kept coming through, but they no longer seemed as funny as they had been that Wednesday. Any subtle hints towards chances to meet up were ignored and the light atmosphere and enthusiasm Alice usually carried with her, slowly diminished. Not that Bella noticed it much, as she reverted to her old coping mechanisms and shut everyone out.

Angela, the sweet girl she was, tried to lighten the mood by talking about her little brothers who she would soon be seeing, but Bella barely listened. Sleeping, which was usually her refuge, became a tedious task as she lay wide awake in bed for hours on end.

Charlie could do nothing but watch his daughter retreat into herself, hoping that she would soon manage to pull herself out of that dark place. However, when there was still no improvement after nearly a week, he knew something had to happen.

"Bella?" he started. They had been sitting across from each other in silence for yet another evening.

Bella lifted her head from where she had been listlessly playing with the food on her plate to look her dad into the eyes.

He leaned forward. "Please put in a call to your therapist, to set up an appointment."

Bella bit her lip, looking back down. "Alright."

"Hey," her dad said as he placed a hand on top of hers. "You don't have to try and deal with it all on your own. Not anymore."

Later that week Bella found herself walking to English class early, feeling much lighter. She found Alice already seated in her usual spot and, after taking a deep breath, she spoke a sincere apology for her ignorant behaviour. Although Alice assured her it was all fine, saying she understood, Bella could see the relief in her eyes. It made her feel terribly guilty to think she had hurt people, had hurt her friends, by retreating into herself. She made a vow, right there and then, to try and learn again how to cope better with difficult situations.

"Would you like to come over this afternoon?" Bella found herself blurting out near the end of English class. "I, well, I'm baking some things for my dad and his colleagues and I could use the help, if you'd want to?"

Alice looked surprised, but recovered fast as a big smile spread across her face. "I'd love to come and help!"

That was how Bella found herself in the kitchen with an excited, yet quite helpless, Alice.

"I just realised I have actually never done this before," Alice muttered, looking at the buttons on the kitchen aid with wide eyes. "I've seen Esme bake before, but I never did it myself. Why are there this many settings?"

Bella had to bite the inside of her cheek to prevent herself from laughing. "There is a first time for everything, isn't there? It's not nearly as difficult as you think, anyway. Let's get the ingredients out first. Why don't you go grab the butter from the fridge?"

With Alice's help, it took twice as long as usual to finish up the first batch of cupcakes. However, if she was being honest, Bella did not mind at all. The atmosphere was light, and she had not realised how much she needed to have a bit of fun after the emotionally draining week that lay behind her.

They soon fell into a comfortable interaction as the bantered back and forth about mundane things and began working on the next batch.

"It's weird," Bella commented offhandedly, mixing in the flour with an absentminded look.

Alice looked up from the cupcakes she was taking out of the cooling muffin tin. "What is?"

"I've known you for, what: two, three weeks now?" At Alice's hum in confirmation, she continued, "It feels like so much longer. It usually takes me ages to warm up to new people."

Had Bella been able to see Alice's face, she would have been met with a blinding smile.

It was like that, that Charlie found his daughter and her new friend when he returned home from his shift. He could feel the strange charge in the air, but decided not to comment on it as he hung his jacket in the hallway and put his gun in the safe.

"Hey Bells," he said when he stepped into the kitchen.

"Hi Dad." Bella smiled and turned around to give him a hug. "I don't think you've met Alice?"

"Nope," Alice answered instead. "It's a pleasure to meet you, officer! My dad thinks very highly of you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Alice," her dad said, shaking her hand. "And call me Charlie. Anyone who makes Bella smile like that deserves it."

Bella was sure that her cheeks were a bright red colour as her face warmed up in embarrassment. "Dad!"

Her dad had the decency to look at least slightly scolded and he cleared his throat. "Well, uh, I guess I'll leave you two to it. I'll take care of dinner, Bella, so don't worry about that."

An awkward silence hung in the kitchen for about two seconds before Alice blurted out "I did not know humans could turn such a shade of red!" and Bella burst out in nervous laughter.

Bella's newfound happiness kept her going all throughout the weekend and the shitload of homework she had to complete. However, the floaty bubble was burst on the next Monday afternoon, when she turned on the television to look for some entertainment and a news item grabbed her attention.

 _"A young couple was found dead a few feet into the forest near Anchorage this morning. Although the investigation is still ongoing, the police has revealed that the cause of death for both victims was complete exsanguination. We have here with us crime specialist Carl Stevens. Carl, could you tell us…"_

Bella snapped out of her trance and turned down the volume, blindly reaching over to grab her phone from the coffee table. Within a second, she had dialled the phone number of the Denali residence.

 _"Hey Bella,"_ she heard. _"How are you doing?"_

"Hi Irina," Bella answered, eyes scanning the television where they were showing brief flashes of the side of the road where police cars were blocking the view from the press. "I'm alright, I think, though there is something I wanted to ask you. It might be nothing, but I have a bad feeling about it. Have you seen the news today?"

It was silent for a moment. "We did see it, yes, if it's the murders you're talking about?"

"Yes," Bella nodded.

 _"We talked to the Volturi and thought we should take a look at it ourselves, to make sure it was not caused by a vampire. Tanya and a few of the Cullens went out to investigate it this afternoon."_

"And?" Bella asked. "Did you hear anything from them?"

 _"I just got a message that they found a scent."_

* * *

 _"Not knowing is a dark place."_

* * *

 **A/N: First of all, I'd like to put a disclaimer here: I do not have any expertise in the area of law (especially law considering divorce and custody). All information used, comes from personal research I did on the internet, but my sources were limited and as such my knowledge is in no way perfect. I probably took, and will take, quite a bit of artistic liberty with this story, though I'll try and keep it as true as I know it to be. If there are any inconsistensies or if you think anything is not right, please let me know, so I can take that into account with the rest of the story.**

 **Now that that's out of the way, here is part 7 of Touching Souls, with a bit more material for the plot and, of course, time for Bella and Alice to bond. Bella has to deal with her issues and coping mechanisms as her past comes back to haunt her. I'm sorry it took me quite a while to update, but after my exams I flew across the globe and I decided I should probably explore this beautiful country instead of sitting inside and staring at a screen. But, I found a bit of time to write, so here you are! I hope you enjoy it, I will soon be working on the next chapter, though I don't know when I'll be able to finish that one. Thank you to all who reviewed the last chapter, and I'd like to ask you to please leave me a review to let me know what you think of this part, it would totally make my day! Until next time,**

 **\- Laura**

 _ **PS: I don't know if it's common knowledge, or whether I only know it because of the vampire fandom; 'exanguination' means 'the action/process of draining/losing blood.**_


	8. Memories to Remember

**{Memories to Remember}**

* * *

 _"Where_ are you going?"

She must have heard him wrong, there was no way—

"I'm going to Anchorage for at least two days," her dad repeated, eating another forkful of lasagna, not noticing his daughter's distress. "Have I told you yet how awesome your cooking is?"

Bella's heart beat a little faster as she blurted out, "You can't go there!"

Now he looked up at her in concern. "It will be perfectly safe, honey. Mark will be going too, and we are just there to see if a different perspective will progress the investigation. The pressure on the department there has increased ever since those other bodies were found."

"No," Bella shook her head furiously. "They can't send you? Why are they sending you? You can't just go and" — she waved her arms around frantically— "search for a bunch of murderers!"

"Bella, breathe," her dad said. The worry in his voice effectively halted her in her movements.

"I know it might sound scary," he continued. "But I promise I'll be safe. It's all a part of my job. What is it about this that scares you?"

"I-I," Bella stuttered as she regained control of her breathing. Sighing, her shoulders sagged. "It's nothing."

Her dad did not look convinced; if anything, he seemed to be more troubled. However, unlike Bella's brain, he let it go. While Charlie finished off his plate, her mind turned over the new information it had been given, and it would not stop bothering her. Because where her father believed he would be chasing a very human serial killer, she knew that the offender was anything but that.

Several of her supernatural friends would be chasing the guilty vampire at his side.

* * *

It was this last bit of knowledge that ended up reassuring Bella of Charlie's safety later that same evening during a phone call with Tanya.

 _"We will be out there, in Anchorage tracing the scent until Demetri and the others arrive from Volterra."_

With the realization that they would be near Charlie, Bella could not help but ask, "Can you please keep an eye on my dad?"

 _"Of course, that has always been a part of our job description,"_ Tanya joked. _"No, but seriously, Aro has made it very clear to us that we should keep both you and your family safe. I will see to it that at least two of us are around him at all times."_

"Thank you," Bella sighed as part of the burden slipped off her shoulders. "I probably won't sleep much while he's away anyway, but I feel better knowing you guys will be nearby."

Tanya hummed in acknowledgement. _"You know what, why don't you come over to our place when your dad leaves? Carmen, Irina and Kate would love to have you around."_

Just like that, the plans for the weekend were made. After the phone call, Bella asked her dad for permission to stay over and he granted it immediately. Although he did not speak of it, Bella was sure that he too felt more at ease knowing she would not be alone.

That Friday after school Bella drove her dad's old red truck to the Denali residence, where Carmen welcomed her with open arms.

"Hey honey," the woman greeted her with a careful hug. "How are you coping?"

"I'm doing alright," Bella muttered, avoiding Carmen's gaze as she extracted herself from the cold embrace. "Thank you for letting me stay with you."

"Of course, it is always a joy to have you here," Carmen replied, deciding not to comment on Bella's obvious lie. "Irina is in the kitchen, I believe she has been experimenting with some cooking today."

Bella smiled and tried to lighten the mood while she took off her gear and dropped the overnight bag next to her shoes. "Should I be scared?"

Carmen let out a warm laugh. "I do think she has yet to burn anything. Let's see what happens and pray the house will still be standing at the end of the day."

"I heard that!" Irina yelled.

Bella followed the voice and found the blonde leaning over the stove, peering into the big pan filled with who knows what. As though she felt Bella's gaze, she looked up and sent the human a grin. "Good afternoon."

"Hi," Bella sniffed the air when the smell of Irina's cooking assaulted her. It was such a distinct scent that she wrinkled her nose in confusion and asked, "What are you making?"

"Asian style chicken wings," Irina answered. "I was watching TV and they were preparing it on one of those cooking shows you like to watch. I felt like giving it a try today."

Bella's stomach turned when she finally placed the smell. Giving Irina a tight smile and a forced "nice", she stepped out into the hallway and took a few deep breaths to calm both her stomach and her mind.

"Bella?"

Her eyes shot up to find Carmen standing in the doorway of the living room.

"I'm alright," Bella lied once again. "I was just going to look for Kate. Is she outside?"

"I believe she is in the shed at the moment," Carmen told her with a troubled expression.

"Thanks," Bella said, ignoring the guilt she felt and she made her way over to the hallway, where she slipped her shoes on. She opened the front door, but halted at Carmen's voice.

"Put on a coat!"

A small smile crept up on Bella's face and she sighed loudly for the dramatic effect before grabbing her jacket from the coat rack. Pulling the wooden door shut, she started on her way to the shed in the Denali's backyard.

The fifteen-minute walk across the vegetated plain helped to quiet down the voices in her head and she arrived at the wooden building feeling less loaded. Out of courtesy, she knocked on the door, letting herself in at Kate's "Come on in!" Once her eyes had adjusted to the dim lighting, they sought out the blonde's familiar form, though she was nowhere to be seen.

Without warning, Kate popped up from under the working bench at the far end of the workshop, holding up a tiny screwdriver in victory. "Ha! I found the little sucker."

Bella glanced at the materials stalled out in front of her and frowned. "What are you doing?"

"I want to try to install some windscreen wipers on a pair of glasses." At Bella's incredulous look, Kate shrugged, "I'm bored."

"Alright," Bella muttered. She closed the door and shrugged her coat off, throwing it on a stool in front of the bench while taking seat on another.

Kate gave her a once-over as her look turned serious. "What is wrong, girl? You look pale. Well, more than usual."

"It's stupid." Bella shook her head at the blonde's piercing gaze and was suddenly very interested in the patterns on the floor. "It's nothing, really."

Kate put down the screwdriver and walked around the work bench. Her hand came up to nudge Bella's chin so the girl met her eyes.

"I know it is not nothing, so don't give me that bullshit," she said softly. "It's okay if you do not wish to talk about it, but please know you always can. We're all here for you."

Bella kept silent when Kate's hand fell away and the blonde made her way back over to the project. Her eyes followed the busy hands and their careful hold on the glasses as they got back to working.

"Irina was cooking," Bella said after a moment of silence. She waited for Kate to make a crude comment about her sister's lack of skills, but was instead met with quiet while the blonde briefly halted in her movements before moving on.

She continued. "I recognized the smell from something, though I didn't know what from until she told me what it was and, well, I guess it unnerved me." She took in a deep breath. "It's stupid, but I've had that meal once before and it was— it was in the week before we went to Italy. During that dinner, my-— Harriet brought up that she and Philip wanted me to go to therapy once we returned from vacation."

Bella wrung her hands together tightly as her stomach wound up. She could still vividly remember the sense of foreboding her fourteen-year-old had felt in that moment.

"I at first thought they were talking about my mental health, but then she explained that she had talked to this woman from church, who had contacts within this facility in our city and I knew something was wrong."

She bit on her lip, trying to contain the sob that was threatening to burst out. Once she had collected herself somewhat, she went on.

"They told me— they said it was time I would do something about the so-called 'unnatural urges' I had. They were going to send me to _conversion_ therapy, Kate."

The tiny screwdriver snapped in half with a resounding "crack" and Bella looked up at Kate while she tried to hold her tears at bay. However, the compassion she found in her friend's eyes broke her and she was soon crying into her hands. She did not stop when she was carefully drawn into Kate's embrace.

"I knew this guy from school, who went there," she found herself spilling with a thick voice. "He was never the same again and I knew I did not want to live like that. I-I didn't want to live at all."

Kate's arms tightened around her and Bella breathed in the calming scent before choking out, "I went to Italy, but I never planned on coming back."

"I am so glad you did come back," Kate whispered hoarsely.

Bella briefly closed her eyes and responded, "Me too."

* * *

"I still feel like it's stupid," Bella commented as she browsed the shelves of the hardware store.

"What?" Kate asked, picking up a pack of screwdrivers for inspection.

"Just that such a mundane thing set me off."

Kate sighed. "Memories have the ability to surprise you like that at times. I think it's understandable that your mind linked that particular food and its smell to a traumatic experience, there's nothing stupid about it. I've been reminded of something that happened decades ago by a smell before, or even a song at times. The brain is a weird organ."

"And when infused with venom, it gets even weirder."

Kate whirled around to find Bella grinning at her. "Why, you little-"

"Hi Bella! Hi Kate!"

"Alice!" Bella exclaimed when the pixie walked into their aisle. "What are you doing here?"

"Just getting some materials to fix up the hole in the wall of Rose and Emmett's room," Alice said with a smile.

Bella quirked an eyebrow. "How did that happen?"

"Trust me," a booming voice spoke. Bella turned around to see the huge form that was Emmett. "You don't want to know."

"Oh," Bella answered, before realization dawned on her and a dark red blush crept on her cheeks. _"Oh!"_

Emmett threw his head back and laughed at Bella's expression. "Your face looks kinda like a tomato now."

"Emmett, don't be so mean!" Alice scolded her brother, though she too was sporting a smile. "I think her blush is cute!"

If possible, Bella's face heated up even more and she groaned when Kate joined Emmett in his laughter. She cursed her body for betraying her and snatched the screwdrivers out of Kate's hands.

"Let's go and pay for this," she said, grabbing the blonde's sleeve as she pulled her along.

"Wait, Bella!" Alice's voice made her halt.

A second later the pixie stood in front of her. "Would you like to get together later this weekend?"

"I'm sorry, I can't, I'm staying with the Denalis for a few days," Bella said apologetically.

"Oh, well that's alright," Alice answered, though her shoulders slumped a bit.

"We would not mind having your over at our house, if you want to come?" Kate proposed.

Alice perked up. "I'd love that!"

The two vampires looked over at Bella simultaneously and the human simply shrugged.

"Sure, why not?"

Later that day Bella found herself texting back and forth with Alice during dinner, which consisted of take-out tacos. When she and Kate had arrived back home, all remains of Irina's cooking had disappeared, but she had decided not to comment on it.

An incoming message distracted Bella from the reply she was typing about Alice's plans. Without much thought she opened it, but once she had read it, she closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh.

Irina looked up from her book. "What is wrong?"

"Dad has been asked to stay in Anchorage for an extra day."

"Tanya and the others will keep him safe," Irina reassured her. "You know that, don't you?"

"I do," Bella said, though she felt conflicted. "I just can't help but worry for him."

Despite the fact that her bed was comfy and her head felt heavy after such an exhausting day, Bella lay awake for hours on end that night. She stared up at the ceiling as her mind summoned up hundreds of situations in which her dad got hurt. Logically, she knew he was perfectly safe, but the scenes kept her busy until she finally fell into a fitful sleep in the early morning hours.

When Bella was slowly pulled back to the world of the living — and the undead, of course — she felt as if she had only slept a few short hours. A little peek at the alarm clock on her nightstand confirmed her suspicions and she groaned, rolling over to bury herself deeper into her comforter. There was no way she was getting up right now.

A tinkling laugh broke through her sleepy haze and she frowned in confusion. That was, until she felt an icy-cold hand on her neck and she shot upright with a scream.

"Holy fuck!"

Her eyes soon fell upon the offender. "Alice! What are you doing here?"

"It's ten," the pixie chimed, grinning devilishly. "I just arrived, but you were still asleep! So I thought I would help you to wake up."

Bella was not pleased — she was never in the best of moods right after waking up — but the snarky reply died on her tongue with one look at the excited pixie. And then she remembered she had just _woken up_. She could not imagine what she must look like to the impeccable vampire.

It was as if Alice had read her mind when she commented, "I love the hair!"

Instead of burying herself underneath the covers, like she wanted to do, Bella simply groaned in defeat and hid her face in her hands. "Thanks."

"Well, now that you're awake, I think I'll go back downstairs," Alice said, shifting from her spot at the edge of the bed. "I'll be waiting for you, so don't even think about going back to sleep!"

Bella did not think she would have been able to fall asleep, had she wanted to. Shivers ran along her spine as she got up from her warm bed and she quickly grabbed some clean clothes from her bag to change into.

True to her word, the pixie was still waiting for her in the kitchen when Bella came downstairs, fully clothed and with tamed hair.

"Good morning again," Alice chimed, receiving a small smile from Bella who went over to the kitchen counter to grab herself a bowl of cereal.

"So," Bella drawled when she took a seat at the table with her breakfast. "What are the plans for today?"

"Let's first get our homework out of the way," Alice suggested. She watched in fascination as Bella ate her cereal, before continuing. "And then we can just see what we want to do? Maybe we could watch a movie if you'd like?"

Bella shrugged. "Sounds good."

"What kind of movies do you like?"

"There's actually a lot I enjoy," Bella said and joked, "Why don't you take a look into the future and see what we will watch?"

"My gift doesn't quite work like that," Alice explained with a laugh. "People have got to make a choice first for me to see the definite outcome. Not that it would work for you."

Bella's heart jumped in her chest. "Why not?"

"I can't see you," Alice told her, looking down and tracing her finger along the ridges of the wooden table. "It's not like there's a big black space where you should be or something, but whenever I take a look into the future, you're just not there."

"I-" Bella started, licking her lips. "I can't see you either. Not when I touch you, not when I look you in the eye. There's not even that weird buzzing static that most vampires are surrounded by."

"I'd figured," Alice hummed.

"I'm sorry you can't see me," Bella offered. "It must be hard to predict things when I mess up your visions."

"I don't mind," Alice replied with so much conviction that Bella did not doubt her answer. "It is weird, different most certainly, but it doesn't bother me as much as it probably should. It is actually kind of refreshing, not knowing what you will say or do."

The pixie looked up and met Bella's gaze with sparkling eyes. Deep within her stomach, something fluttered as Alice spoke her next words.

"I must say that I have come to enjoy surprises."

* * *

 _"I wish we could choose which memories to remember."_

* * *

 **A/N: I'm finally back with another chapter! I'm sorry for the long wait, but since I've returned from my stay in the land of koalas and spiders, I have been very busy with school. Either way, here you are.**

 **This chapter is perhaps quite a heavy one, especially with Bella's revelation. Sadly, conversion therapy (where they try to forcibly change someone's gender expression or sexuality) is still a reality in the 21st century. To make things clear: no, Bella did not end up going there, as she went to Italy where she (literally) bumped into our vampires who offered her a way out of both options. The trauma that her past left, however, is something Bella has to deal with on a daily basis.**

 **While some are chasing a serial killer, our Bella and Alice are also finally having some time to bond. Next chapter, Angela will make another appearance and the tension between our love birds will rise :)**

 **Please let me know what your thoughts on this chapter are, I love to hear what you think! (even if it's just about how awful I am at updating regularly ;)) Also, do not hesitate to point out any mistakes I made. Until next time,**

 **\- Laura**


	9. The Lives We Touch

**{The Lives We Touch}**

* * *

"Hey Bells!"

Bella shot up from the couch and in no time she flew into her dad's welcoming arms.

"You're back," she sighed into his chest, her voice muffled.

"I told you so, didn't I?" her dad joked, but she could hear the underlying relief in his voice.

"Did you guys discover anything?" Bella asked as she finally pulled back and scanned his face.

Her dad shook his head. "No, all the leads we had found turned into dead ends, and we didn't have any new ones yesterday. The department in Anchorage will continue the search, but we were called back. We couldn't leave our own land unprotected, of course."

Bella snorted, her dad winking at her before she turned around to go into the kitchen. "Sure. Want some coffee?"

He followed along and sat down at the small kitchen table, shrugging out of his jacket to hang it on his chair. "That would be great!" He halted in his movements for a second. "Wait, shouldn't you be in school?"

"No, the teachers have a bunch of meetings today," Bella said, filing through the cabinets above the counter and grabbing two mismatched mugs. Plopping them down next to the coffee maker, she fiddled with the buttons until the ancient machine started grumbling and sat down in the chair opposite her dad.

He raised a brow. "Didn't you want to stay with Tanya's family today?"

"I kinda felt like going home," Bella mumbled, rubbing her head. "Besides, I still had some chores I had to finish up here. I'll probably call them later today to see how the trip was."

Her dad smiled. "You do that."

Once the coffee was ready, they drank it in a comfortable silence, both caught up in their own thoughts. Neither of them felt the need to fill the silence with unnecessary conversation, a trait that ran on her dad's side of the family. Hanging around with others who did talk non-stop could be tiring at times.

"I'll be upstairs," Bella said, standing up as she gulped down the last of her coffee. "Are you cooking tonight?"

Her dad nodded. "Go and relax a bit. You look like you need it."

He was spot on with that remark, Bella thought, making her way upstairs. Once she was in her room and had shut the door, she threw herself onto the neatly made bed. The past few days had been a rush; it had been so much fun to have Alice around. However, it had also been very overwhelming and she was not sure which emotion outweighed the other.

 _Touch._ It had become such a foreign concept to her, yet it had felt freeing to be able to do it without having to worry about headaches, or comas. Sure, she hugged her friends and her dad, but around them she always had to be on guard. Even subconsciously she was constantly preoccupied checking where she touched others, where they touched her, if her skin was covered and many other details that used to seem insignificant.

With Alice, she could let her walls down. She would be lying if she said that it did not scare her. There was so much she could think of that could go wrong and the temptation to let her worries take over and retreat into herself was strong. Despite it, something in her stopped her from doing so. Now that she had had a taste, she craved the contact, the _touch_. She could not get enough and at the same time it was too much to handle.

Take it one step at the time, she told herself. It was the only way she could see herself coping with these changes, though with every passing minute it became more tempting to just say 'fuck it' and throw herself into it with everything she was. She had not even known that she had missed true, bare touch like this and now she did not want to go back.

Bella lay like that, deep in thought, for God knows how long. Listening as the clock ticked the seconds, minutes, hours away. Finally she willed herself to get back up and started to absentmindedly tidy her room, putting the freshly folded laundry into her closet, rearranging her books on the shelves. She had just dusted off the last book when her dad called up. Checking herself in the mirror, Bella made her way downstairs, where she was immediately attacked by two little creatures.

"Bella!"

A smile lit her face and she kneeled to properly hug the two identical boys. "Hey Isaac, Josh, how are you guys doing?"

As the twins loudly updated her on everything that had (supposedly) happened in the past year, Bella looked up to see her grinning friend stand in the doorway. Her smile grew even wider, noticing how Angela's eyes seemed to glint just that much brighter than usual. She slowly straightened, putting her hands on the twin's backs. "Why don't we go into the kitchen?"

"Actually," Angela spoke up. "We were wondering if you'd join us in the park? My parents are catching up with Aunt Karen and Uncle John, giving us some time to bond."

"I'd love to come," Bella smiled. "Let me get my phone. And maybe we have some cookies in the cupboard to take along, too…"

Angela sent her a mock glare as Isaac and Joshua cheered. "They're gonna be on a sugar high all afternoon if you don't watch out!"

"Not my problem," Bella called with a laugh, going upstairs. In no time she had everything she needed and they were ready to go. After strapping the twins into their car seats, they were on their way.

The drive to the park was short and once they arrived the twins ran off to play, leaving Bella and Angela sitting on a bench with a good view of their antics.

"When did they arrive?"

Angela did not move her eyes off the running boys as she answered. "Early this morning. Uncle John picked them up from the airport.

"How are things with your parents?" Bella found herself asking.

"It's… tense," Angela said, pulling a face. "It's been worse, but it's in no way comfortable. I just wish they would at least try to have a genuine conversation with me. But they've pretty much been avoiding me all morning and the twins are starting to notice."

"They're quite smart," Bella remarked.

"Yup," Angela nodded. "Now that they're six they understand a lot more. Or at least, they want to know a lot more. It's been driving Mike crazy; they trailed him for nearly an hour asking questions about everything he did."

Bella let out a laugh.

"Aaangela!"

One of the twins (Isaac?) was waving frantically at her to come over and with a small sigh Angela stood up. "Duty calls."

It was not long after Angela had disappeared into the playhouse to go down the slide that the other half of the twins found his way to her side. Her eyes were pulled to the tag hanging out of his beanie that read 'Joshua' and she made a mental note to try and get a hang of which one was which. Joshua pushed himself up onto the bench and let out a deep, heavy sigh that made Bella want to laugh.

"Is Angela coming back home with us this time? With the plane?"

Bella looked down at him, surprised. "I don't think so, no."

"Oh," Joshua said with a frown. "I wish she would. It's not as much fun if she isn't there."

"I know, buddy," Bella said, pulling him into her side. "But Uncle John and Aunt Karen take good care of her, you know that right?"

"I do," Joshua nodded. "They can be nicer than Mommy and Daddy. Angela doesn't like to be called Paul, but they still do it sometimes."

"That's true," Bella said. "But I'm glad you two know she is Angela. I'm sure it makes Angela really happy too."

"What makes me happy?" Angela asked breathless as she came over with Isaac clamped on her back.

"Cookies," Bella grinned, taking the packet out of her bag. She immediately had the attention of the twins, and after being reminded by Angela to say 'thank you' they ate their cookies in silence.

"Thanks for coming along," Angela said later that afternoon when they were hugging goodbye in the driveway of her house.

"Of course," Bella smiled. "I loved spending time with you and the twins."

"I'm glad. See you tomorrow!"

"See you tomorrow! And Ange?"

Angela stopped. "Yes?"

"Don't let them drag you down, alright? If things get too much, you can always message me. I'm here for you."

"Thanks," Angela said with a smile. "Will do. And the other way around works too, you know."

When the car had turned around the corner of the street, Bella fished her keys out of her pocket and let herself in, toeing her shoes off in the hallway and putting her jacket back on the coatrack. Her gloves followed, and once her fingers were somewhat defrosted, she found her way to the kitchen, where her dad was already busy with dinner preparations.

"Hey Dad!"

He turned to face her, and Bella snorted when she saw he was wearing the apron she had bought him last year for Father's Day as a joke. Her dad struck a pose, showing off the toned torso that was printed on the fabric.

"Looks great on you, Dad," Bella said. She walked over to the table, but as soon as she sat down she could feel something was not quite right. She looked her dad into the eyes and could see the underlying worry in his eyes, unsettling her. "What's wrong?"

"No, no, nothing's wrong," her dad reassured. "It's just, well, you've got mail."

He pushed the envelope that lay in the middle of the table towards her. Bella frowned and picked it up, scanning the front. 'To Isabella' was all it said. She looked to her dad for an explanation.

"Mr Lagmann delivered it when you were gone," he said awkwardly. "You don't have to open it, if you don't want to, it's all your choice. He just thought you should have it in case you do decide to open it."

At once Bella recognised the handwriting, and she dropped the letter like it was burning her. "Mom."

"Yeah," her dad nodded, keeping an eye on her reactions. "I told you before that she'd written a letter to you, when she'd been demanding the judge would reconsider her visitation rights. Well, this is that letter."

Bella grimaced and picked it back up to inspect it. Should she open it? She was not sure what to expect from a message like this. She had not seen her mother for over two years and while it had hurt to leave at the time, the relief of not having to live with the woman anymore had been overwhelming. Was she going to risk opening old wounds?

Dinner was filled with small talk, her dad asking questions about her afternoon at the park as he not-so-surreptitiously tried to distract her. Once she had helped him clean up the kitchen, she disappeared into her room, letter held in her hand. Shutting the door, she made her way over to the desk. The letter got a place on top of a pile of insignificant papers in the top drawer, which she slid close with a satisfying thump.

Out of sight, out of mind. Right?

Before she could rethink her decision, her phone rang. Checking the number, she quickly picked up. "Aro?"

 _"Darling Isabella, my lovely niece!"_

"Is everything okay?" Bella asked, still on edge.

She could practically hear him smile. _"Yes, things are fine here. We just have a few minor inconveniences we have yet to deal with. Do you recall the scent the guards and your friends were tracking this past weekend?"_

Bella let out a slight laugh. "Do I remember what happened yesterday, an issue in which my father was involved and something which was making me worried as hell? Of course."

 _"Well, we did not manage to catch the one who had been hunting and attacking those humans,_ " Aro said. _"However, the guards did find someone else. A vampire."_

"Alright," Bella nodded. "And now? Is there anything I can do?"

 _"That is why I wanted to speak with you, young one,"_ Aro started. _"They arrived back in Volterra just now, but as it soon became apparent, his mind is a bit… **messed up** , I think you people would call it."_

"You can't get any reliable information out of him," Bella said in realisation.

 _"We would like to request your help in the matter."_

A mixture of dread and anticipation filled her stomach, but Bella did not have to think too long to answer. "Alright, I'm in. When are we doing this?"

 _"It would be best to carry out the interrogation as soon as possible,"_ Aro said. _"Especially since we suspect the issue might be personal, this close to your residence. We would like to handle everything quickly."_

"What about my dad? And school?"

 _"Well, as it turns out your great-uncle has suddenly ended up in the hospital, and you are unsure if he will make it. It is adamant that you visit him before it could be too late."_

Bella wanted to smile. Aro had always had a flare for the dramatic. "Alright, that should get me time off school. But what about my dad? Surely he'll want to come with me."

 _"Me and my brothers have been conversing,"_ Aro said. _"We think it is time your father is updated on everything that has passed since we met. Including our **condition**. His contacts at the police department could be helpful and we should confer with him about your future."_

Bella's heart jumped in her chest. "Are you sure?"

 _"Very much so."_

"Okay," Bella nodded resolutely. "Let's get this plan started."

* * *

 _"Our fingerprints don't fade from the lives we touch."_

* * *

 **A/N: Hey people, it's been a while! Thanks for being patient with me ;) I have been busy with many other projects these past few months, and it wasn't until yesterday that I felt like writing another chapter for this story of mine. I'd love it if you left me a review to tell me what you think of this chapter! I really do appreciate it. I don't know when I'll be uploading next, but this story is still one I'd love to continue so I'm sure there'll be another chapter some day ;) Until next time,**

 **\- Laura**


End file.
